Smoking ice cube and mold to form the same

ABSTRACT

An ice cube for use in a water pipe with an ice catch may present a plurality of bores formed within the bulk of the ice cube. These bores will then allow smoke from a smokable substance to pass through the bulk of the ice cube and enhance the cooling effect of the ice cube on the smoke. The bores may be interconnected by one or more tranches at a bottom surface of the ice cube such that fluid communication is maintained between the bores, in the event the bottom of the ice cube is partially impinged upon by another ice cube or other obstruction. A mold for making such a cube may be accomplished by having a plurality of rods extend from a bottom of the mold and providing appropriate ridges to form the trenches.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of smoking and more particularly relates to an ice cube mold and the resultant ice cubes which are used in water pipes to cool smoke before inhalation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Smoking is an ancient practice, with archeological evidence indicating it has been practiced for over three millennia. In the practice of smoking, a substance, usually a dried plant part or an extractive thereof, is burned and the resultant smoke inhaled. Compounds within the burned substance are aerosolized and carried in the smoke. When in the lungs, the aerosolized compounds are then readily absorbed by the smoker's blood stream. Many different substances may be smoked for legal enjoyment, the chief of which is tobacco.

Smoking does have certain drawbacks. Of primary concern is the effect of inhaling smoke which may carry other, less desirable, and potentially harmful compounds. For this reason, filters are often used when smoking. While filters may also inhibit the inhalation of desired compounds, they have also been shown to significantly reduce the inhalation of tars and other harmful compounds. One filter is water. Water pipes have been in use for centuries. Not only does water filter the compounds in the smoke, but it also cools the smoke before inhalation, creating a cooler smoke which is seen as more pleasant by many.

One recent modification to water pipes is the introduction of an ice catch. An ice catch is a narrowed part of the pipe, usually in the mouthpiece, which is used to hold ice cubes directly in the inhaled smoke stream. These catches are found on water pipes as the resultant melt of the ice is merely added to the water at the pipe's bottom. The narrowing of the mouthpiece is usually accomplished by a plurality of prongs made in the wall of the mouthpiece itself. This allows smoke to flow around the ice and allow cooling while still allowing for smoke inhalation. Sometimes, however, the ice is not quite sufficient to cool the smoke as drawing smoke around ice cubes creates uneven and inefficient cooling of the smoke. It is desirable, then, to draw smoke through the ice cubes. Also, ice cubes can jam together while melting and block the passage of smoke through the mouthpiece, defeating the purpose of smoking.

What is needed, then, is an ice cube design which allows smoke to pass through the body of the ice cube while also providing greater surface area for cooling and continued passage of smoke through the ice cubes as they melt and jam together.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of ice cubes, an improved smoking ice cube and a mold, or form, for making it are disclosed. As such, the ice cube's general purpose is to be a new and improved smoking ice cube that features a plurality of joined passages therethrough. Using a plurality of thinner passages generates more ice to smoke contacts and increases the cooling effect. Having the passages joined allows smoke to continue to be drawn through at least one passage if another is blocked. The more important features of the invention have thus been outlined in order that the more detailed description that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may better be appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter and will form the subject matter of the claims that follow.

Many objects of this ice cube and form will appear from the following description and appended claims, reference being made to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

Before explaining at least one embodiment of the smoking ice cube and its attendant mold in detail, it is to be understood that the invention itself is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways, including use in different fields. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Disclosed herein is an invention for an ice cube mold, used specifically for creating ice cubes for use with water pipes. These ice cube molds include rods inside of each ice cube mold, which are intended to produce tunnels running through the final ice cube created once frozen. First the Invention is filled with water and put into the freezer. Once the ice cubes are frozen, it is then dropped into the top of the water pipe, and caught on the ice catch. The Invention includes an inclined stage on the bottom of each mold, which the rods are positioned on top of. This stage produces an opening in the bottom of the ice cube to allow the cubes to be stacked while still allowing smoke to flow from one cube to another without interference in airflow. While the tobacco smoke is pulled through the water pipe, the smoke pulls directly through the tunnels inside of the ice, leading to most efficiently cooling the smoke before it reaches your lungs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ice cube mold for creating one type of ice cube.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an ice cube formed in the mold of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an alternate perspective view of the ice cube of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an alternate perspective view of the ice cube mold of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the ice cube mold of FIG. 4, taken along line 5-5.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a water pipe, utilizing the ice cube of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference now to the drawings, a preferred embodiment of the smoking ice cube and a mold for making the same are herein described. It should be noted that the articles “a”, “an”, and “the”, as used in this specification, include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 4, an ice cube mold 10 may have a plurality of chambers 30 in which water may be frozen to form ice cubes 20 (FIGS. 2 and 3). Each chamber should be defined by a wall and bottom surface and may feature a plurality of rods 110 extending upwards from the bottom surface such that a negative of said rods 110 will be formed in the ice cubes 20, specifically as a plurality of bores 210 throughout the bulk of the ice cube 20.

The bores 210 may be connected by a trench 220. This trench 220 may take any shape, so long as it connects and allows fluid communication between the bores 210. As seen in the ice cube embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the connection ring 220 connects six bores 210 so that if anything impinges on the face of the ice cube 20 (such as a second ice cube), smoke may still flow through each bore 210, so long as the impingement does not cover the entire trench 220. It is to be readily understood that forming six parallel bores 210 into a ring and connecting them with a circular trench 220 is but one example of possible arrangements. Any number of bores 210 may be utilized, with preference being for smaller bores of greater number, as the bulk of the ice cube 20 allows. Any trench shape, or even number of trenches, may be utilized, so long as each trench 220 connects at least two bores 210. Trenches may even extend past the perimeter of the ice cube 20 and open to the cube's side.

Trench 220 is formed by a corresponding ridge 120 on the bottom surface of each chamber 30 of the ice cube mold 10 (FIG. 5). Ideally, rods 110 should originate on the ridge 120, but even an off-set connection will suffice to form the fluid communication needed for the practice of the invention in its best mode. It is, of course, possible to forgo the use of the trench 220 and merely rely on the use of multiple bores 210, however the use of the trench 220 and fluid communication with each bore 210 adds additional functionality to the ice cube 20 which the inventor sees as advantageous.

In use, FIG. 6, one or more ice cubes 20 are positioned in the mouthpiece 34 of a water pipe 30. It then rests on the ice catch 32, which prevents the ice cube 20 from falling into the water. As a smokable substance, such as tobacco, is burned in the bowl of the pipe, smoke is directed through the water and into the mouthpiece 34. It then flows over and, importantly, through the ice cube 20 and is further cooled (as the water will perform some initial cooling) as the smoker inhales the now cooled smoke. By directing the smoke through the ice cube's bores, a more efficient cooling of the smoke occurs. This then leads to an experience many smokers find more pleasant.

The preferred embodiment ice cube mold 10 is made of a flexible FDA approved silicone material or an equivalent. This invention can be made with one single color silicone per unit, or combined colors to make a multi-color silicone design. In this manner, various shapes and variations in the ice cubes 20 may be easily accomplished, including size, number of bores, positioning of bores, and shape and presence of the trench.

While described in primarily the context of smoking, it should be readily apparent that the invention itself may be practiced in any other art whereby a fluid may pass through a cooling element or an element designed to infuse a characteristic, such as a flavor, into that fluid. Specifically, the use of an ice cube as described will have a more efficient cooling effect on a beverage due to the increased surface area of the cube due to the bores. Although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, numerous modifications and variations can be made and still the result will come within the scope of the invention. No limitation with respect to the specific embodiments disclosed herein is intended or should be inferred. 

I claim:
 1. An ice cube mold having at least one chamber, each chamber further comprising chamber wall and a chamber bottom, with a plurality of rods extending upwards from the chamber bottom.
 2. The ice cube mold of claim 1, further comprising at least one ridge, positioned on the chamber bottom and having contact with at least two of the plurality of rods.
 3. The ice cube mold of claim 2, the at least one ridge serving as an origin of all of the plurality of rods.
 4. An ice cube formed from the ice cube mold of claim
 3. 5. An ice cube formed from the ice cube mold of claim
 2. 6. An ice cube formed from the ice cube mold of claim
 1. 7. An ice cube comprising an ice cube bulk, said ice cube bulk defining a plurality of bores extending from a bottom of the ice cube to a top of the ice cube.
 8. The ice cube of claim 7, each of the plurality of bores being in fluid communication with at least one other bore by a trench defined in the bottom of the ice cube.
 9. The ice cube of claim 8, all of the plurality of bores being in fluid communication with each other by a single trench defined in the bottom of the ice cube.
 10. A method of smoking with a water pipe, said water pipe having a mouthpiece with an ice catch and a bowl connected to the mouthpiece by a stem which enters the mouthpiece below a waterline, the method comprising: a. adding water to the mouthpiece to cover the stem opening; b. providing an ice cube comprising an ice cube bulk and having a plurality of bores defined in said bulk such that said bores extend from a bottom of the ice cube, through the bulk and to a top of the ice cube; c. positioning the ice cube in the mouthpiece such that it will be held in a smoke stream by the ice catch in an orientation such that the plurality of bores is aligned with the mouthpiece; d. placing a smokable substance in the bowl of the water pipe and lighting said smokable substance such that it will produce smoke; and e. inhaling said smoke through the water and over and through the ice cube.
 11. The method of claim 10, the ice cube being provided also further having defined by its bulk at least one trench connecting at least two of the plurality of bores such that they are in fluid communication.
 12. The method of claim 11, the at least one trench connecting all of the plurality of bores. 